The Forgotten
by procellous
Summary: Five girls, from all different backgrounds, come together for one purpose: Revenge on the Justice League. And how better to get their revenge then through their sidekicks? OC story. SEQUEL NOW POSTED
1. Prologue

Prologue

A dark room. A round table with mismatched chairs around it.

Cloaked figures move into the candlelit room.

"We were forgotten by them," one said.

"We are anonymous to them," another said.

"We will have our revenge on them," a different cloak said.

They took their seats around the table.

"Blur," the first cloak said, pulling down her hood to reveal very short blonde hair, blue eyes, and the edge of a blue-grey uniform.

"Echo," the second said. When she pulled her hood down, she revealed shoulder-length black hair and cold, wolf-like brown eyes.

"Angel," the third cloak said. The back of her cloak was bulky, and when she removed her hood, she took off her cloak also to bare two large, grey wings, along with brown hair and green eyes.

"Valkyrie," said a fourth cloak. Valkyrie had two long blonde braids and warm brown eyes, and was wearing a red tunic under her cloak.

"Maria," the final cloak declared. She uncovered her face to show them black hair, black eyes, and a thick scar across her right eye.

"No king, no queen, no lord, no master! We will not be fooled again!" they swore, then began to plot revenge on the Justice League and their team of sidekicks.


	2. Backstory - Echo

Echo  
_The Institute, 2012_

* * *

"Goodbye," I whisper, quietly opening the window. It's a three-story drop to the ground, with no way to slow the fall, but I'm desperate. I drop, landing in a heap on the cold, rocky ground. Luckily, I didn't hurt myself. I double-check my bag, making sure everything's there. I'm wearing black to blend in with the moonless night, but that won't help if I'm caught. I slip past the guards, careful not to move too fast. As soon as I get close to the wall surrounding the center, I take out my hoverboard. It's a prototype, but works perfectly. Like me, I think, a working prototype. The only difference is that it's not the only one. The other two, plus the blueprints, are in my bag.

I'm outside the Institute, facing against the wall, climbing up slowly. The wall is smooth, but there are tiny nicks in the wall. Not deep enough for anything but my fingertips, but they'll do. I reach the top of the wall and see the electric barbed wire. I step over the tangled wires. This is my most risky moment. If I'm spotted now, it's all over. There's no way I can run faster than the - crap!

I've been spotted. Jumping down the 50 feet of wall, I land funny and feel my ankle twist. It's probably sprained, but it doesn't matter now. I can only think of one thing: run. I do, but barely manage to get into the trees outside before the pain is too much. I collapse, and realize I'm still holding my hoverboard. I drop it and snap. It unfolds, revealing the secret technology. It's shaped like a surfboard, about half my height, and a good two feet off the ground. I jump on, wincing as I land, and the straps wrap around my feet and ankles, making an inadvertent splint. I lean forward, and the board responds, shooting forward. I lean right and left, zigzagging through the trees. The guards have released the dogs, I can hear their distant barks. I lean forward even more, coaxing every bit off speed out of my board, reaching the stream.

I'd spent the past 18 months in that place, but I've spent the past 6 planning this. The stream is my ticket to freedom. I just follow it and I'll reach the town.

The dogs are getting closer now - I can hear their barking getting louder. The dogs are vicious - I've fought them as part of the tests after the op.

But I'm nearly out of the woods. Once I reach the field, I'm barely ten feet from the town, and I can catch the bus out of here. Reach DC, and I'm home free.

But first, I have to reach the field. With mutated, vicious dogs chasing me.

This is gonna suck.

I burst out of the trees, a pack of about twenty dogs hot on my heels. I lean forward, coaxing the last of the speed out of the board. The dogs have fallen back a bit, but they could catch me in a heartbeat if my board crashes.

I probably shouldn't have thought that.

My board cuts out. I press the button on the side, and it collapses. I shove it in my bag as I run, five feet from the town. It's nearly dawn, and the sky is beginning to lighten. I'm running on a sprained ankle with dogs at my heels. Then I reach the town. I'm running as fast as I can, and the dogs have stopped. They won't go into the town, for which I'm grateful, because I'm in the town, and safe. The bus has pulled up on the street corner, and I pay for my ticket and board the Greyhound. The bus starts up and leaves for DC.

I've escaped with documents people would kill for.

I'm a sixteen year old girl, alone in the world, and I have no plan, little money, and all of my possessions fit in a rucksack.

But I'm free. And I wouldn't trade that for the world.


	3. Kidnapping - Beginnings

"So it's agreed, then?" Echo asked.

"Yes. We kidnap the sidekicks of the _Justice League_," Blur spat.

"We tell their mentors that we have them," Maria added.

"And when their mentors try to save their precious sidekicks," Valkyrie said.

"We kill the kids," Angel finished.

"And we have our revenge. At last. They will never forget us again," Echo concluded. "And after what happened to Blink, they deserve it."

Blur put her blue-clad arm around her friends shoulders.

"We all miss her, Echo. They'll pay for her death."

* * *

_Mount Justice_

"Target one spotted. He's alone," Maria said, looking down from her perch in the rafters at her masked target.

"Be careful, M. He's good. Don't underestimate him," Echo's voice said from their radios.

"Understood. Engaging in 5 . . . 4 . . . 3 . . . oh, screw it," Maria murmured, then jumped down behind the smaller boy. He must've heard her landing, because he turned around, birdarangs in hand.

"Who are you?" he asked, "How did you get in here?"

"I'm Anonymous, bird-boy. And that's all you'll ever find out about me," she taunted, then launched two of her ninja stars at him. He dodged one, but the other cut his cheek, slicing through skin. He gasped in pain. _Good_, she thought, _We'll have you suffer more later. _He didn't seem too badly hurt, though, because he threw his birdarangs towards her. She dodged them easily, noting as she did that he wasn't aiming to kill or even do permanent damage.

"Hate to wrap it up so soon, bird-brain, but I so don't have time for this," she said, and dropped one of the knockout pellets she had brought. He pulled out a rebreather in response, grinning.

"Are you sure that was a good idea? You don't have a gas mask," Robin asked.

"Don't need one," she said. "But you seem to. Wonder what happens when you don't have it?" The gas had gotten pretty thick, and it was practically child's play to send a star right towards his rebreather. It clipped the end, but that was all that was needed. The gas filled Robin's mouth, and he collapsed.

"Target one captured," she reported, stripping him out of his gloves and cutting off his belt. The rest could be done back in base.

* * *

"Target two, spotted," Blur reported, "He's alone. Engaging in five."

The blue speedster smirked, feeling the familiar weight of her marlinspike in her hand as she readied herself for combat. Not that there would be much of it. She zipped behind him and brought the metal spike down on her unsuspecting target's head.

That was fast.

"Flashy," she muttered, looking over the yellow uniform with the red emblem. "Pun fully intended."

* * *

"Target three, spotted. Engaging."

"Be careful, Val. He might be your size, but he has super strength."

"Echo, why do you continually doubt me?"

"Just making sure you don't bite off more than you can chew."

Superboy clearly heard the conversation, because he aimed a punch at the blonde's head. Valkyrie ducked around it, braids swinging, and pushed him back by his shoulders. He skidded back into a wall, not expecting her force.

With a shout of anger, he tried to punch her again, but she caught his punch, grinning. She twisted his arm as she also brought a knee into his stomach. He let out a grunt of pain, and she dropped the knockout pellets Maria had given her. He started choking on the gas before collapsing.

"Way too easy," Valkyrie said to her radio. "What were you saying about what I can handle, Echo?"

* * *

"Targets four and five are together," Angel reported, "But neither of them are anything I can't handle."

"You sure?" Echo asked.

"What is it with you today? We got this. Focus on Aqualad."

Angel swept down on silent wings, readying her mace. She knocked out the archer first, bringing her mace down on her head. The martian girl heard her friend's gasp of pain and turned to where the thanagarian stood.

"Who are you?" she asked, lifting a chair towards Angel.

"I'm Anonymous," she replied, smashing through the chair like paper, then brought her mace down on the green girl's head.

"Targets four and five are captured," she reported.

* * *

_Why did he have to be near the pool when we started fighting?_ Echo thought.

Luckily, she was a surgically-enhanced killing machine with a hoverboard. She had already cut him up pretty badly and he was getting tired.

_You are tiring as well, Echo. Suggested tactic is to overpower the Aqualad and remove his waterbearers. _

_Mind lending a hand, then?_

_Gladly. He has an opening in his defense - yes, right there. _

The water shield crashed down as Echo sent a kick to Aqualad's temple and he stumbled. He fell into the water he had been using, and Echo removed his waterbearers and tank before tying him up.

"Echo to Anonymous. Do you have the targets?"

"Yes," came the immediate and unanimous reply.

"Then bring them to the base and let's get this started."

* * *

**Dun dun dun . . .  
**

**Who else saw "Endgame"? I was sobbing at the ending. So mean of them to do that to us! I will say no more because spoilers, but who else cried. My mom asked me what was wrong and I was just *whimper.*  
**

**Yes, I am emotionally attached to cartoons. Deal with it.**


	4. Backstory - Valkyrie

Brinnie  
_Iceland, AD 985_

* * *

Brynhildr Eiriksdottir, or just Brinnie, was a girl who knew what her life was like. She had a mother and a father, a twin sister, Freydis, and three brothers, Thorvald, Leif, and Thorstein. She had spent her whole life in Iceland on her family's farm, and had her fair share of adventures.

Namely, killing a bear while exploring the woods. Which was totally the bear's fault. It had attacked her and nearly shredded her left arm.

Besides, they got meat for the whole winter. And feeding seven people was not easy.

Anyway, Brinnie was sitting on a hillside, trying not to think about what was going on in the field below her.

Which happened to be her wedding.

And now she was thinking about it. Great.

It wasn't that he was ugly or mean, Olaf was just . . . well, Olaf. And she wanted her independence, her freedom. Not to become like mother, who spent all day cooking and sewing and raising children.

She didn't have a problem with any of that. She had done a good deal of all of those, and wasn't bad at it, per say. She just wished she could be more like the women from the sagas. Like Skadi, the goddess of winter, who didn't have to do the wifely things that she would be expected to do. Or like Brynhildr the Valkyrie, who had mouthed off to Odin himself.

"Brinnie! Brinnie!" Freydis called, snapping the blond out of her reverie. "I want to show you something!"

"Is it a way to stop me from getting married to Olaf?"

"Well, if I can get it to work, it will," she said.

"What are you waiting for? Do it, do it!"

"Okay," Freydis said. "But it might not work quite right."

"Better than what I'm looking at right now," Brinnie said.

"A marriage lasting a grand total of a few hours, 'cuz first thing you would do in the morning is divorce him?"

"Yeah. Key words, there: In the morning. As in, after a night of being married and having to be his _wife_?"

"Oh. Right."

"Okay, what's this you're gonna try?"

"Right. It would transport you somewhere else. I'm not sure how far, but it'll be worth a try, right?"

"And what if you can't find me afterwards?"

"Then you use the reversal, duh." Freydis pulled two pieces of wood out of her pocket and drew her knife. She made a few inscriptions and handed one to Brinnie, keeping one for herself. "Oh, and Brinnie?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't take too long. Just a few days should cover it. But I can probably figure out how to send you a message if it's not safe yet and stuff, so . . . "

"I'll be back before you know it."

"Right, then. Be safe, sister," Freydis said, then began the spell.

A set of three overlapping triangles appeared, enveloping Brinnie. The world swirled for a moment, then everything went black.

* * *

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed this story!**

**To the anon reviewer: I'm not sure what your incredibly long review was about, but thanks anyway?**


	5. Kidnapping - Attention

When Wally woke up, he realized a few things. One, he was tied up. Two, he was suspended from the roof of what looked like an abandoned store. Three, he wasn't alone. The rest of the team were hanging in a similar way to him, except for M'gann and Kaldur. He couldn't see them anywhere, and hoped they had escaped . . . whatever had gotten them.

Whatever had gotten him must've hit him on the head: he could feel the bruise forming. Artemis seemed to have gotten a similar treatment, given the blood dripping down her face. He wasn't entirely sure why the sight of her blood was bothering him so much. Artemis had gotten hurt worse on missions, but something about this situation was making him protective of her. Superboy and Robin didn't look hurt, though Robin was missing his utility belt and mask. He was in civvies, too - and then he realized that they were all in civvies. Probably their captors had changed them. That was a disturbing thought, so he stopped thinking about it in favor of trying to escape. Though even if he managed to escape his bonds, it was a very long drop. He remembered what had happened to Robin's parents, how they had fell from the trapeze. And then he realized - they knew. Whoever had kidnapped them, they knew Rob's secret identity. They knew how his parents had died. And they would probably drop the team.

Who had done this? How did they get into the mountain? And why?

"Hey, look! The flash boy is awake!" a cheerful voice said from on top of the rafter they were tied to. Wally managed to look up at the girl who had spoken. She had black hair and cold grey eyes. She would be very pretty if she didn't look ever-so-slightly wrong. Maybe her skin was a little too smooth. Maybe her huge grin didn't reach her eyes, or maybe her teeth were a little too pointy.

Either way, she was creepy.

"He's awake?" another voice said. "Can I beat him up now, please?" The speaker was a blonde girl with blue-grey eyes and a costume to match. A large, slightly darker blue lightning bolt stretched all the way across her torso. She also had a spike strapped to her thigh that had a large lanyard wrapped around her wrist.

And yeah, she was really hot. Capable of killing him, but still hot.

"Hey, beautiful. Mind getting me down from here?" he asked.

"Actually, I do. Please, Echo?" the blonde asked.

"Yeah, go ahead. Don't hurt him too badly, though, we need him . . . recognizable. And alive, I suppose."

"Fun-killer."

"That's not the only thing I kill, Blur, and you know it."

Blur smirked and pulled out the spike.

"I just have one question," Wally said as she approached.

"Yes?" she asked, smirking at him as she pulled back to hit him.

"Wouldyougoonadatewithme?" he said, the words running together.

Her smirk got bigger.

"No," she said, then started to hit him with the spike. First his legs, hitting them rapidly, then slowing down, then speeding up again. Eventually there was a snapping sound, and the pain got worse. Both his shins were broken. Then she moved up to his chest and stomach. He lost track of what was broken, it all hurt so much.

The world swirled back to black.

* * *

"So, who do we let go?" Maria asked.

"I say the blonde girl. She's just a human, and disarmed she's not much of a threat," Echo nominated.

"Well, it won't be flash boy, he can't move," added Blur, "So I'm for Blondie."

"So it'll be Blondie, then," Angel concluded. "Val? Maria? Any problems with that?"

"Blondie, definitely. Val?"

"Yeah. Blondie."

All five members of Anonymous walked over to where the blonde archer was tied up. Maria climbed up to the rafters, pulled out a knife and slashed her free from the ropes while Angel swooped underneath to catch her and lower her down to the ground. Once she was on the ground, Echo shook her awake.

"Angel, did you have to hit her so hard?" Blur asked from where she was sitting by the archer's head.

"Oh, is she badly hurt?"

"Not badly - she'll recover. But she's bleeding. You got her good."

Angel gave a non-committal grunt. The blonde was starting to come to.

"Ugh . . . where am I? Who are you? How'd I get here? Why am I bleeding?" she asked.

"Um . . . Anonymous headquarters, Anonymous, we brought you here, and Angel sometimes forgets that humans injure easily. Any more questions?" Blur answered.

"No, that covers it. I assume you're the ones who took my bow and arrows?"

"You could so assume," Valkyrie said.

"Look, we need you to carry a message for us. Tell the League," Echo spat the word like a curse, "That we have their sidekicks as our prisoners at the abandoned building by LAX and that if they don't come by midnight tonight, we'll kill them."

"Any reason you're trying to kill yourselves, or are you just crazy?"

"We'll have more of a Q and A when you show up with the League. Bye bye, Blondie," Maria said dismissively. Blur smirked from behind the archer as she picked her up bridal-style and carried her out of the building and dumped her onto the street.

* * *

**I am in so much denial over Endgame, it's not even funny. HE IS ALIVE, DAMMIT.**


	6. Backstory - Blur

Jessie  
_Los Angeles, 2012_

* * *

I'm holding on to the sink like it's a lifeline, and it is, because somehow the world is ending and crashing down around me and it's all my fault and the bottle of Tylenol is there, and I grab it and shake out the pills because maybe it will take this headache away and I stuff them into my mouth without caring because this will solve all my problems and maybe my parents will stop fighting once I'm dead, and that word echoes in my ears _deaddeaddead_ and it's almost defiant and just a little sad and my life is shambles, so why live it -

A horrible clarity descends and I see all of them, every fictional character I've ever loved, every character I lived with and read and watched and heard, and they're all in the mirror and they're just standing there and I can't take this anymore because it hurts so much and I don't matter and I'm just useless and can't do anything and I start crying and I must look so stupid because I'm still holding the pill bottle and the pills are in my mouth so I spit them out because they just look so sad in the mirror and I sob on the tile floor of the bathroom and they're gone, and I go back to bed and I cry into my pillow and my mom must have heard because she comes in to my room and rubs my back a bit and she must think I had a nightmare or something and I did, but it isn't a dream, it's real and I can't wake up and there is no alarm clock to ring in the morning and let me leave the nightmare of my life and only my dreams are happy nowadays and so _to sleep perchance to dream_ and maybe I understand Hamlet a little better now and I'm on the ledge and in the happy dreams there's that chorus of _I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine,_ and one day I'll believe it but I know I'm lying and somehow I'll convince myself that nothing's wrong and maybe I should tell someone, but my parents will tell me I'm a coward, because they think suicide is cowardly and my teachers will tell me to talk to a therapist or my parents and therapists just want to medicate me and I can pretend all I want, it won't make the truth go away even though this is my greatest act ever and _all the world's a stage_ and somehow my life's in shambles again and happy endings are in fairy tales and my life is as far from a fairy tale as it could be and somehow nobody notices that I'm not there and I smile something broken and it doesn't reach my eyes but it doesn't have to and somehow the world is different but it's the same and does it even care and it doesn't but I know that people care so I smile something broken and remember it was the accident's fault, but I caused the accident and so this whole mess is my fault and somehow I got super speed even though this isn't a comic book and am I the hero or the villain and if I'm the villain who's my hero and I could really use a hero right about now because I can't save myself much more.

* * *

**Tried something new here, let me know if it worked.**

**Kinda short, sorry.**


	7. Kidnapping - Motivations

"Hey look! The League's here! Ooh, we got a lot of them, didn't we? Black Canary, Martian Manhunter, Batman, Flash, Aquaman, Green Arrow, Red Tornado, and Captain Marvel!" Echo, well, squealed.

"I don't think Thanagar heard you, Echo. A little louder?" Angel snarked.

"Girls, girls, stop fighting and watch the best home video ever," Blur cut in.

On the screens, the security feeds were showing the League in their attempt to rescue their proteges.

"Ha! Look, they split the party! Everyone knows you shouldn't do that!" Echo laughed as Batman, Flash, Aquaman and Green Arrow went down one hallway and Black Canary, Red Tornado, Martian Manhunter and Captain Marvel went down another.

"Time for an interception. Girls, let's go get 'em." Val smirked.

Echo and Blur walked to the hallway Batman, Flash, Aquaman, and Green Arrow took, while Angel, Valkyrie, and Maria took the other.

* * *

As Batman stalked down the corridor, Flash at one side, Aquaman at the other, and Green Arrow behind them, he thought about what Artemis had said. This group, Anonymous, wasn't one he had heard of before. She had also said it was all-girl, one clearly Thanagarian, the four others looked human, and they seemed to hate the League. Other than that, she didn't know anything. And somehow they had taken out all six members of the team.

There was a footstep, just loud enough to hear, and all four superheroes got ready to fight.

Then Flash and Aquaman crumpled to the ground in strange synchronization. Batman whirled around, but only saw the shadows, and just barely a blue streak. He turned around again, and came face-to-face with a smirking blonde girl holding a blunt spike. He crouched down, reaching for a batarang when he felt a sharp blow to the back of his head, and he crumpled down to the ground with Flash and Aquaman. Green Arrow fired an arrow, but a black-haired girl caught it and snapped it moments before the blonde hit him with the spike and he joined his fellows on the floor.

* * *

J'onn J'onz, better known as Martian Manhunter, mentally scanned for any minds nearby, to avoid an ambush and to find his niece and her friends.

Suddenly, he picked up on two minds he didn't recognize. One was like a broken mirror, and the other was like a rock. Both were definitely human, though.

"There are two humans nearby. They may be who took our children," he reported.

Three figures appeared from the shadows. The broken-mirror mind, a girl with long black hair covering half her face, flexed her fingers and a ninja star appeared in her hand. She threw it expertly towards Red Tornado, but he summoned a small whirlwind and diverted it away. Black Canary unleashed her Cry, but she had no sooner opened her mouth when a gag was tied around her mouth. She lashed out with a kick, but only connected with the wall. A tall blonde girl hit her on the back of her head, and Black Canary crumpled.

Meanwhile, a girl with wings was attacking Captain Marvel. J'onn tried to read her mind, but found only a blank space, like she had a mental block. She eventually got a lucky shot in at Captain Marvel with her mace, and he crumpled beside Black Canary. The blonde and the girl with wings went back-to-back as they faced down the other two. J'onn realized that the black haired girl had vanished just as he felt a sharp pain on the back of his neck and he fell. Only Red Tornado was still standing, and the winged girl attacked him ruthlessly, electricity crackling around her mace. The blonde attacked with equal ferocity until eventually the black haired girl managed to get the drop on the android and plant a star on his upper chest. The winged girl hit the same spot with her electrified mace a second later and the android crumpled as well.

* * *

The leaguers began to regain consciousness only to find they were in civilian clothes and tied to chairs. The chairs were also bolted down to the ground. And the members with superpowers had inhibitor collars on. Whoever had done this had been thorough. And, to make matters worse, their attackers had taken them to where their proteges were.

Tied to chairs, in civilian clothes, unconscious, badly beaten up, and suspended high enough that the fall would kill them.

"No . . ." Batman breathed. He remembered watching Dick's parents fall to their deaths. Now, he would be forced to watch Dick fall too. And he was helpless to stop it.

"Oh, hello! We were wondering when you would wake up. We are Anonymous, and we'll be your captors this evening. But, since we like our victims to know what they did to deserve our company, we are going to introduce ourselves to you, complete with our motivations. So, I'll start. I'm Echo, and I'm here because you did nothing to help me when I was captured by Cadmus and 'enhanced'. Of course, what would the great and powerful League care about a street rat like me?" said the pale, black haired girl that just seemed wrong, like she was drawn in another style than the rest of the world.

"I'll go next," a disembodied voice said from the shadows. A girl with long black hair half-covering her face materialized. "I'm Maria, also known as one-four-six. I was sold into slavery when I was four, and spent eight years in hell. Where have the greatest heroes of Earth been for me and the millions of others that share my fate? I lost an eye to escape. But there are others that aren't so lucky. But wait! Why would the League care about the fate of a bunch of kids who must have brought this on themselves or should have fought back somehow against men four to five times their size."

"My turn, I guess," the Thanagarian said, from her perch in the rafters by the ropes holding up the team. "I'm Angel. And I'm here for revenge on my sisters' behalf. This . . . negligence would not be tolerated on Thanagar."

"I'm Blur," said the smaller blonde in blue-grey, "and I'm here because I have nothing better to do, no home to go back to, nowhere I'd be welcome. And, y'know, being declared dead really puts a damper on your _entire life_."

"I'm Valkyrie, and I also have nothing better to do, considering I'm eleven hundred years into the future," the tall blonde declared.

"And we're all here for revenge on Blink, also known as our sister who is dead at your hands," Blur said.

"You, the League, attacked her without provocation, just for being who she is and in the fight, she died," added Valkyrie.

"She was innocent, but you killed her, just because she was a Lord of Chaos," Echo concluded.

"So, we're getting our revenge. Angel, whenever you're ready." Maria said.

Angel drew a knife from her right boot and with a few quick slices, cut the ropes holding up the team.

* * *

**And I shall leave you there. See you tomorrow for your next chapter of backstory!**

**Speaking of backstories, I take it you guys didn't like what I tried last chapter, judging by your lack of reviews. I'll be changing that to my other version presently.**


	8. Backstory - Maria

**Trigger warning: Rape, slavery, human trafficking, torture, forced child prostitution.**

_Maria_

_Somewhere, 2010_

* * *

The dress. It all comes back to the dress. That dreaded red dress, that represented my slavery, my hell. That dress, that reason why I could never see anything red without remembering.

Remembering my sister, casually handing me off to a man four times my size for a wad of money.

Remembering that room I was shoved in as a different man "broke me in."

Remembering the number they gave me instead of a name: _146_.

Remembering the rooms, (so much like the first) where other men shoved themselves inside, brutal and harsh.

Remembering the chambers where we were punished, (for speaking out, for flinching away) punished by a live wire inside us.

Remembering forgetting my name. (only a number, one four six, one four six)

Remembering when I had two eyes, before a knife claimed the other. (a knife carelessly wielded by a man who liked the pain of others)

Remembering 2,922 days, 243 months, 8 years of hell.

The blue sash tied around my waist, that sash that represents my freedom, my sanctuary. The sash I can't look at without remembering.

Remembering freedom.

Remembering reclaiming my dignity. (reclaiming my life)

Remembering my new life, made from my scars (wires and blood and nights cold and lonely) and the knowledge that I would return to save everyone, (save every victim, like I wasn't saved) because I would not - could not - stand for another to go through hell.

Remembering healing.

Remembering the kindness of a stranger who gave me a name_. _

_Maria._

_(one four six, one four six, like the heartbeat of my scar, one four six, one four six)  
_

* * *

**Because it may not be clear what happened to Maria there, check out love146. org (if you can spare the tears.)**

** Maria's numbered after the original number 146.**

**Short, I know, but more will come next Saturday.**


	9. Kidnapping - Endings

Robin regained consciousness, then wished he hadn't. Everything hurt, and his first thought was that he was in the batcave. Then he remembered what happened - a girl had fought him, and damaged his rebreather, making him inhale knockout gas. Somehow she was immune to it, but he wasn't. He could feel ropes cutting into his flesh, holding him to what felt like a chair.

"She was innocent, but you killed her, just because she was a Lord of Chaos," a girl was saying. He struggled to open his eyes and find who was speaking or where he was, but he could barely open his eyes through the pain.

He tried to focus on finding a way out, but whoever had tied the knots had been good - and he was in civvies. Wait, he was in civvies! He had been in uniform at Mount Justice. That meant . . . someone had changed his clothes. That would be less creepy - or maybe more - if he knew who had done that. Someone had taken his belt, though, and lockpicks, and knives, and from the pain in his hands, had broken several bones there.

Well, he was Robin, the Boy Wonder. He would find a way to escape if it killed him.

He tried to untie the knots, but he had barely managed to get through the first set, binding his wrists together, when something snapped with a very familiar snap. One he still heard in his nightmares.

A rope had just snapped.

And he was falling, helpless to do anything about it.

* * *

Batman watched the knife flash as Superman hit the wall of the abandoned store, crashing straight through. He grabbed the unconscious falling kids, bringing them gently to the ground. The five girls of Anonymous smirked and vanished into the shadows, leaving only a note behind.

_Watch your back._

* * *

From her spot in the shadows, Echo watched, smirking, as Batman paced in front of the door to his son's room. Four out of five of the sidekicks they had tried to drop were badly injured from the beatings. Only Superboy wasn't hurt much, thanks to his invulnerability.

Flash was in his protege's room, talking to Kid Flash. Martian Manhunter was in Miss Martian's room as well, comforting his wounded sidekick. Idly, Echo wondered what their relationship actually was. They knew Flash was Kid Flash's uncle, Batman had adopted Robin, Superman refused to acknowledge Superboy, and that Aquaman was Aqualad's king, but they didn't know the relation of the two Martians.

And Batman, feared "Dark Knight" of Gotham, was extremely worried about his son.

_Guess he really does care. Learn something new every day._

_It would be foolish for the Batman to not care. Their work requires trust. For the Batman to not care about the Robin would be detrimental to their trust. Furthermore, the Batman is the Robin's father, is he not?_

_You have access to all of my knowledge and memories and you still need to ask. Yes, by adoption. And you're using pronouns! I'll corrupt you yet. Soon, you'll use contractions, and sound like a normal human. Y'know, if you weren't a voice in my head that Cadmus implanted._

_I am _not_ a voice in your head. I am your instinct, given-_

_A voice and a smart-ass personality. I know._

_I do not have a personality other than a reflection of your own. If you would listen to me for once in your existence, you would know that.  
_

_I do listen. You're incredibly useful in fights. The rest of the time you're just annoying. _

_I am a reflection of yourself, you know. How can you be certain that the rest of your little pack do not see you the same way as you see me?_

_Because they're my friends. Shut up._

Echo resumed watching the feared vigilante to pace in front of the door and reviewed where her sisters were. Blur was back in LA, probably talking to her grave. She did that when she was upset. Maria was breaking things somewhere, probably criminal's necks. Angel was flying somewhere, probably somewhere in Canada. Valkyrie was almost certainly in their gym, hitting things.

There were two streaks in front of her hiding place, one red, one yellow.

The Flashes? Where were they going?

* * *

"Hey Jessie," Blur whispered as she knelt by the grave. "Long time no see, huh?" The grave didn't reply. "Well, I haven't _seen _you in two years, so there you go. Anyway, we've hurt a lot of people. Mom, Dad, even that little kid. They didn't learn from you, did they? I guess that kid, Ryan, he'll be compared to you. And he'll never be good enough. You weren't. Not that he'll know that.

"But when you died, I swore I would only ever hurt the bad guys. But I can't even do that right, can I? I hurt the good guys, Jessie. I hurt them, hurt them badly, and . . . and I thought I was doing the right thing, that they were the bad guys. That they _deserved_ it, because they had let the world crumble like it is, that they had _neglected _the world. And, yeah, they have, but that doesn't give us the right to do that. Just because we're doing a better job, just because we're actually cleaning up the streets, that doesn't mean we're allowed to hurt them."

Blur broke down crying at the grave, tears falling behind the mask she only wore around her hometown. Suddenly, an unfamiliar hand reached out and touched her shoulder. She reacted with lightning speed, grabbing and twisting the arm, her marlinspike in her hand and at the throat of the person in less than a second. She blinked, taking in the red cowl and suit of the Flash. Flash boy, (she knew his name was Kid Flash, but she liked the ring of flash boy better), in his ridiculously bright yellow uniform stood a little bit away.

"What. Do. You. Want," she growled.

"Actually, we were hoping we could talk to you. Since you're a speedster, and all, we thought we could chat. How'd you get your powers?" Flash said, not in the least deterred by the fact that he was pinned to the ground.

"Spare me the sarcasm, if you don't mind."

"That wasn't sarcasm. We really do want to talk to you. Who's Jessie?" Flash boy said.

Blur recoiled as if she'd been smacked. _Who's Jessie? Aside from me, back when I lived with my parents? Aside from my confidant and best friend, just behind Echo? Who's Jessie? _"None of your business," she snarled. "How much did you hear?"

"Well, most of it. Could we have this conversation somewhere else, though? My arm's falling asleep," Flash suggested.

"Fine, whatever. There's a diner on 84th, doesn't ask questions. Superheroes aren't the weirdest thing there."

Blur walked out of the graveyard and down the street. Flash and Flash boy followed, curious.

She walked in a storefront, said a few words to a waitress, and grabbed a seat. The Flashes sat down across from her in the booth.

"So, you wanted to talk?" she asked.

"Do your parents know about the whole . . . superhero thing?" Flash asked.

Blur gave a little laugh, part mocking and part really sad. "No. They don't even know I have superspeed. They think I died a nice, normal little girl. No special powers or anything."

"Woah, wait up. They think you're dead?" Flash boy asked.

"Yeah. They think I died two years ago. Guess I did. Or, civilian Jessica Marlin did."

"So you faked your own death? _Why?_" Flash boy asked, stunned.

"I didn't have to fake anything. I ran away from home. Couldn't take pretending any more. Two months later, I was declared 'Missing and presumed dead.' They held a nice little funeral, and I became Blur."

"You should go back. At least let your parents know you aren't dead."

"What would be the point? Jessie - y'know, their nice little angel? Jessie's long dead. She died two years ago. I respect her, but we're not the same. Not anymore. I go back there, and I lose Blur. They'd take me to a doctor, try to get the superspeed out of me, try to make me forget I was anything other than their darling, perfect little _angel._" She spat the last word like a curse. "Not that Jessie ever was. But they'd expect me to . . . not be able to fight or hold my own in anything other than academics. Then they expect me to be perfect."

"You can't know they wouldn't accept you. They're your parents, they care about you," Flash said.

"How do I know? Because even when I lived with them, they thought about me as _perfect._ And then they expect me to be perfect. And I can't take that. Can't . . . can't _be_ perfect. Not anymore. It's why I left."

Figuring that this would be a good place to change the subject, Kid Flash asked, "So, uh . . . how'd you get superspeed, then?"

"Chemistry class. Some guys threw acid at me. I got sent to the nurse, she said that I wasn't hurt and there wouldn't even be a scar, and I got sent out of school early. Next day, I had superspeed."

"Wait, did the guys get in trouble or anything?" Kid Flash asked.

"No, why would they?"

"Because vitrification is a crime? Because you could have been badly hurt? Because that's ridiculously unsafe?" Flash said, dumbstruck.

"Try, 'because they were the golden boys of the neighborhood, because their parents bribed pretty much everybody, or because everybody in that school hated my guts'. That works, too."

"Um, so, do you have a place to stay? Or are you guys out on the street?" Flash asked, suddenly feeling sorry for the girl.

"Yeah, we do. Not exactly the White House or anything, but it's nice enough."

"I have to ask. What's with the spike? Why do you use it instead of, I dunno, knives or something?" Kid Flash asked.

"Misplaced sentimentality. My grandfather taught me how to use it and, well, he left me his collection of marlinspikes when he died, so . . ."

"So you use them to remember him? Emotion isn't something you should be ashamed of, despite how Batman acts," Flash said.

"Whatever," she said dismissively, turning her face away. Then she did something unexpected by the two Flashes. Carefully, she took off her gloves, turning her hands palm up on the table.

Twin scars sliced across both of her wrists.

Both Flashes looked slightly sick as they realized what those scars meant.

"I've hid these from pretty much everybody. My parents, my teachers, everybody. Except from Anonymous. And now you two. So, there you go. If you're going to pity me, you might as well have a reason to."

"Just so you know, we don't hate you or want you dead," Kid Flash said.

"Wish you would. But I guess hatred's beneath you, isn't it? Anyway, nice chat. Bye!" she said, standing up, grabbing her gloves and walking out, leaving the two Flashes dumbstruck.

"What was that about?" they both said in unison.

* * *

"So, what's our next move?" Echo asked. All five members of Anonymous were gathered in their warehouse in a rough circle, talking.

"We have a trafficking ring in India to bust, for starters," Maria said.

"So let's go. What are we waiting for?" Blur smirked.

Suddenly, a glowing tunnel appeared. A figure was walking out, and as it got closer, it was revealed to be a red head with black dots barely visible underneath blindfolded eyes, and purple streaks in her red hair.

"Blink?" Five members of Anonymous asked at once.

* * *

**Sorry for the late update. Blur and the Flashes talk! More of her backstory is revealed! And Blink appears! The kidnapping arc is done! There will be an epilogue!  
**

**If I were to write a sequel/follow up to this story, or another arc, would you read it? Leave suggestions for the topic in reviews!**


	10. Backstory - Angel

Kyria  
Serenity, 2010

_Duty or emotion?_ I thought. _Do I try to save a few million, or try to save a few trillion? Can I sacrifice one planet for the galaxy?_

I stood in front of a button. If I pushed the button, a planet would die for a hyperspace bypass that would allow us to slip past the Gordanian defenses and end the menace at the source. Hro Talok, my fiancé, stood beside me, to remind me where my loyalties lay.

"Kyria, I know it's hard. But you have to. Serenity is a necessary casualty. I know you care about them. Your big heart is what I love most about you. But this is for the sake of the galaxy. We can destroy the Gordanians at their source. The galaxy will never have to be afraid again," Hro said.

"This is a planet with more than three million intelligent life forms. There are billions more that aren't as intelligent. How can we knowingly destroy an entire biosphere? How are we any different from the Gordanians?" I argued.

"Lieutenant. Kyria. Thol. You have to trust me. The hyperspace bypass will allow us to destroy the Gordanians. The Serens won't suffer. But if the Gordanians notice this planet, and they will, you know what will happen. It will be a wasteland, completely uninhabitable. It's even possible that Serenity will just move."

"Lieutenant. Hro. Talok. Listen to me. Serenity won't just move, and you know it. A planet will die, just because the High Command can't find an uninhabited planet to use for the hyperspace bypass. I love you, Hro, I really do, but this isn't like you. The man I fell in love with would have found another way."

"Ria, there is no other way. Believe me, I looked. For the galaxy to live, Serenity has to die. I know it's hard. But we have our duty."

"Hro . . . is there, truly, no other way? On your honor, there is no other way? If there is, please, tell me now."

"On my honor and on my head. There is no other way. We have to do this."

"Then so be it," I said, and pressed the button.

A million things happened at once. A blinding light covered the world below, and it started to fold in on itself.

The bypass was operational. The strike force began to deploy, and the ground shifted underneath me. I started to fall, but snapped open my wings and lifted off of the ground.

That's not supposed to happen . . .

Images swum in front of me. The private who had stumbled out of the bypass, badly wounded, and told us the news; that the Gordanians had smashed the Thanagarian force, killing everyone. The Gordanian invasion that we smashed on our own planet. The honorable discharge, leaving me a veteran at sixteen.

Gasping, I woke up. Great. Another nightmare. Because I needed more.

I stumbled out of my cabin and into the cockpit. Time to move on. I had been jumping from planet to planet, moon to moon, trying to find a place I could call home. So far, I hadn't found anywhere.

Serenity, my starship, lifted off into the black. My next stop would have to be a place with fuel, I realized as I checked the gauge. I had enough juice to make it to one last planet, assuming it was close, and then I would have to refuel.

Or I could stay there. That worked too.

Next stop: Earth. A little blue marble, barely a blip on the intergalactic radar, but nice enough. From a distance, it reminded me of Serenity.

No, Kyria. Don't think about that. Think about flying this thing.

I had just reached the atmosphere when I ran out of fuel. My ship started falling, fast. I just managed to coax enough power out of the fumes to not crash to hard on the surface.

Great. I was stranded on an isolated world with no fuel and a beat-up spaceship.

Today was _so_ not my day.


	11. Aftermath

"Omigod Blink, where were you? We thought you were dead!" Echo said, rushing forward and hugging Blink, breaking the stunned silence.

"Oh, here and there," Blink said lightly. "Alternate dimensions. Some of them were really weird."

"You will have to tell us about them, you know. But seriously, you went universe hopping and didn't invite us? So unfair, Blink!" Blur said.

"Oh, alright. If you insist. The first one I went to was a lot like this one, except that everyone was the opposite gender . . ."

* * *

"So, what do we know about Anonymous?" Robin asked once he was let out of the hospital.

"Not much," Batman explained. "On the group as a whole, we know almost nothing. They were founded two years ago by the five we met, and another called Blink. They did some work fighting crime in various cities. They've always been ruthless, not afraid to kill the villains. Then Blink died and they got worse. Killing everyone involved in a crime except the victims. 'No mercy for the guilty' was their general policy.

"On individual members, however, we know a bit more. Blur, also known as Jessica Marlin, ran away from her Los Angeles home two and a half years ago, declared dead two months later. She has superspeed, got it from an accident in chemistry class. Echo was harder to figure out, but we did: Elizabeth Bryant, orphan and petty thief also from LA, kidnapped by Cadmus for use in experimentation to create the perfect killer. Maria we know nothing about, other than she hides the right side of her face for some reason. Valkyrie is from eleven hundred years in the past, so we don't know all that much about her. Angel's from Thanagar, but that's all we know. Blink is a complete blank. No records mention her."

"Asterous," Robin muttered sarcastically.

* * *

"So, thoughts on Jessie," Flash said to his nephew once they were back in Central.

"Lonely. Really lonely and sad. Knowing she can't go back home . . . that must suck."

"Yeah. She seemed desperate, almost. Like she needed to tell someone who wasn't Anonymous."

"You know, maybe we could help them. Give them support. They're living alone, and don't have anyone to trust."

* * *

"We still have a trafficking ring to bust, you know," Maria said.

"Then let's go," Blur said.

Six members of Anonymous turned, and left for India.

_What are we waiting for?_

* * *

**So, yeah. Aftermath. The End.**

**Anyone want a sequel? I'm thinking the Reach is going to be ****_so screwed_**** when Anonymous shows up. Maybe a series of one-shots instead of an actual chaptered story?**


	12. Sequel now up!

Hey guys! The sequel is now posted. It's called Broken Mirrors, please check it out.

Can be found here: s/9366219/1/Broken-Mirrors


End file.
